Wire-feed.



No. 642,173. Patented Jan. 30, I900. H. TETLDW.

WlRE FEED.

(Application'filed June 5, 1899.)

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Shea! Flo? FIG-l? ,4: Norms Ptrzns ca, PNOTO-UTNQ.WASHINGTON, n c.

No. 842,573. Patented Jan. 30, I900. H. TETLOW.

WIRE FEED.

Application filed June 5, 1899. (No Model.) 2 Sheets$heei 2.

UNTTnn STATES PATENT @rrrcii.

HENRY TETLOW, or MANCHESTER, ENGLAND;

WIRE-FEED.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 642,173, dated January30, 1900. Application filed June 5, 1899. Serial No. 719,403. (Nomodel.)

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY TETLOW, heald and wire manufacturer, a subjectof the Queen of Great Britain and Ireland, residing at Varley street,Miles Platting, Manchester, in the county of Lancaster, England, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in ire-Feeds, (for which Ihave made application for patent in Great Britain, No. 26,936, datedDecember 21, 1898,) of which the following is a specification.

My said invention relates to wire-feeding machines, and particularly tothe machines used for making travelers for ring and donbling frames. Insuch machines at present used the wire is fed forward against a fixedadjustable abutment, cut into lengths, and bent to the required shape.It is found in practice that the method of feeding the wire isdefective, as it frequently happens that too much or too little is fedforward, so that the length cut off varies, causing defective travelers,which have afterward to be sorted out.

My improvements consist chiefly in the pro vision of means whereby adefinite length of wire may be fed to the machine and by means of whichsuch length of wire is positively and accurately adjusted to the lengthrequired before the wire is cut and bent.

The accompanying two sheets of drawings clearly illustrate my invention.

Figure 1 is a plan view of a machine for making ring-travelers, only somuch being shown as is necessary to illustrate my invention. Fig. 1*- isa detail showing the means for operating the lever m. Fig. 2 is asectional elevation of the same. Fig. 3 is a detail of a part of thereel-feeding mechanism. Fig. at is a detail view of the adjustingmechanism of the ad j Listing-roller 1). Figs. 5 and 6 are detail viewsof the feed-rollers in sectional view. Figs. 7 and 8 are plan views indifferent positions of said rollers. Fig. 9 shows the feed-reel.

To feed forward the length of wire, I provide a pair of feed-rollers a1). One of these rollers ais mounted in fixed bearings c c and is drivenby bevel-gearing from the drivingshaft of the'machine as follows: Asshown in Fig. 2 of the drawings, the drivingshaft d is provided with abevel-pinion c, gearing with another bevel-pinion e, carried upon avertical shaft f, mounted to revolve in bearings iii the frame of themachine. The lowerend of the shaft f also carries a bevel-pinionf, whichgears with a pinion g, mounted on a countershaft h,which is thus driven.A bevel-pinion h on the counter-shaft meshes with a pinion t' on theshaft t", to which is secured the fixed roller a. The shaft 5 of theother roller 1) is mounted in a block b, sliding in a bracket j, securedto the frame, and is thrust into contact with the roller a by means of aspringj', regulated by a serewj or the like, as will be more apparentfrom an inspection of Fig. 4, in which the rollers are removed. Theroller 1) in sliding bearings is positively driven from the other rollerby means of pinions 7; 7G. The lower end of the shaft fits withsuificient looseness in its hearing as to permit the slight movement ofthe roller 1). The roller Z comprises two disk sections, the upper onehaving a concentric portion, with a flange extending therefromconcentric therewith for the major portion of the circumference andhaving an eccentric or cut-away part I) for the remaining portion of thecircumference. The periphery of the lower disk section 0 correspondsexactly to the periphery of said flange, and as these sections areadjustable relatively to each other the feed of the wire can beregulated, as hereinafter described. As the feed-rollers revolve thecam-surfaces formed on the roller 1) come into contact with the rollerct and remove the concentric portion of the roller 1) from contact withthe wire marked in Fig. 6, the feed of which is thus stopped. This isshown in Fig. 6. As shown in the plan View Fig. 7, the periphery of theflange on the upper disk I) and the periphery of the lower section bcoincide and the maximum feed of the rollers is thus offected. Byslackening the nut confining the roller to its shaft b the upper portionmaybe revolved, as shown in Fig. 8, so as to bring the eccentric portionof the flange of the upper section and the lower section out ofalinement, so that the eccentric portion on the lower disk 12 will bebrought more or less early into action, as required, so that any lengthof wire from a maximum to a minimum can be readily fed to the machine.

Instead of bringing the wirefed to the machine into contact with anadjustable fixed abutment before it is cut, asis at present thepractice, I mount the adjustable abutment Z to slide on ways Z Z, cut orformed in the bed of the machine, and reciprocate the same by means of alever m, pivoted at m and actuated by means of a cam n, mounted on thedriving-shaft. This arrangement is clearly shown in Figs. 1 and l. Aspring 17, maintains the bowl 0 of the lever m in contact with the camn.

I prefer to arrange the feed-rollers a b so that they feed forward wirea trifle in excess of the length required.

The reciprocating abutment Z is adjusted so that at the end of itsforward stroke it will form a stop to limit the length of wire required.The wire is fed to the machine by the feed-rollers a b and released fromthe rollers as described. The reciprocating abutment on its forwardstroke comes into contact with the end of the wire and if the length ofwire is a little in excess, as described, re-

tracts it, so that an accurate length of wire is cut and is thenbent tothe required form. The cutting and bending mechanism are as before andform no part of my invention.

It will be obvious that with my improved arrangement for feeding andregulating the wire into predetermined definite lengths before the sameis cut and bent travelers can be made with absolute regularity andcertainty.

Instead of pulling the wire from the drum or reel by the action offeeding forward the wire, as is at present the practice, I drive thereel by a suitable slow motion, so that jerking of the reel is avoided.To effect this, I provide the shaft h, from which the feedrollers aredriven, with a wormp, gearing with a Worm-wheel p, mounted on a shortshaft (1, as shown in Figs. 2 and 3. Fig. 3 shows the arrangement inplan view. This short shaft is mounted in bearings in a bracket r,bolted to the frame of the machine, and is provided with a grooveddifferential pulley 8, connected bya band to a grooved differentialpulley 15, mounted on the axis 0) of the reel to, which is carried insuitable bearings formed in a bracket 2;, carried by a standard w,secured to the frame of the apparatus. Atension-nut v and spring o areemployed to jam the reel u to some extent against its bearings, so as toprevent it from overrunning.

Instead of differential pulleys grooved change-wheels may be employed toprovide for the variable driving of the reel. By these means the wirereel or drum may be slowly revolved, so as to deliver and feed the wireto the machine exactly as it is required.

I declare that what I claim isl. In combination in amachine for feedingwire,a wire-reel, feeding-rolls, one of said rolls having a portionadapted to engage directly with the wire in its feeding action, and anad j ustable portion coacting with the other roll to vary the feed.

2. In combination in a machine for feeding wire, a Wire-reel and twofeed-rolls, one of said rolls having a concentricportion adapted toengage the wire in the feeding action an eccentric part below saidconcentric portion and an adjustable portion coacting with saideccentric portion and the other roll to vary the feed of the wire.

3. In combination ina machine for feeding wire, a wire-reel, feed-rollsadapted to feed at each operation a length of wire in excess of theamount required and means adapted to return the excess, substantially asdescribed.

4:. In combination in a machine for feeding wire, feed -rolls, and areciprocating stop adapted to control the wire fed by said rolls,substantially as described.

5. In combination in a wire-feeding machine, two feed-rolls adapted toclamp the wire in feeding the same, means whereby said rolls areseparated to release the wire and a stop adapted to reciprocate towardthe rolls during their separation to return any excess of feed.

In witness whereof I havehereunto set my hand in presence of twowitnesses.

HENRY TETLOl/V.

Witnesses:

JOSHUA Eurwrsnn, ALFRED YATES.

